Personal protection system with head unit having easy access controls and protective covering having glare avoiding face shield

Abstract

A personal protection system is provided for creating a sterile barrier between a user and an external environment. The personal protection system includes a head unit having a ventilation unit with a fan for distributing air to the user. The personal protection system also provides a protective covering draped over the head unit. The protective covering includes a flaccid shroud and a transparent face shield mounted to the flaccid shroud. The face shield is mounted to the head unit using a plurality of mounting elements. The face shield is mounted such that a top portion of the face shield has a larger radius of curvature when mounted that a bottom portion of the face shield. This reduces the glare directed toward the user. A control panel for the ventilation unit is also provided on a chin bar of the head unit for easy access by the user.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention generally relates to personal protection systems for use in medical environments, such as surgical environments, to protect patients from contamination during medical procedures, and to protect medical professionals from exposure to airborne contaminants and bodily fluids. More particularly, the present invention relates to protective coverings of personal protection systems and controls for head units of personal protection systems.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Personal protection systems are known in the art. Personal protection systems are worn by professionals throughout the medical field, such as surgeons, during surgical procedures. Personal protection systems are used in surgical procedures to provide a sterile barrier between the wearer and the patient. One such system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,054,480. Specifically, the traditional system includes a helmet that supports a toga or a hood. This assemblage is worn by s...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0006]A protective covering drapes over the head unit. The protective covering includes a flaccid shroud with a filter section for filtering air entering the shroud from the external environment. The protective covering further includes a flexible and transparent face shield. The face shield includes a top portion, a bottom portion, and a sealing perimeter. The shroud seals to the face shield along the sealing perimeter. The face shield is mounted to the head unit with a first radius of curvature along the bottom portion and a second radius of curvature along the top portion. The first radius of curvature is smaller than the second radius of curvature to reduce glare that results from light being reflected off an inside surface of the face shield and directed toward the eyes of the user.

[0007]The present invention also provides a protective covering for draping over the head unit. The protective covering includes a flaccid shroud with a filter section for filtering air entering the shroud from the external environment. The protective covering further includes a flexible and transparent face shield. The face shield includes a top portion, a bottom portion, and a sealing perimeter. The shroud seals to the face shield along the sealing perimeter. The face shield supports a pair of lower mounting elements along the bottom portion. The face shield also supports an upper mounting element along the top portion. The upper and lower mounting elements define three mounting locations at which the face shield is to be mounted to the head unit. The three mounting locations provide the face shield with a first radius of curvature along the bottom portion when the face shield is mounted to the head unit using the lower mounting elements and a second radius of curvature along the top portion when the face shield is mounted to the head unit using the upper mounting element. The first radius of curvature is smaller than the second radius of curvature to reduce glare that results from light being reflected off an inside surface of the face shield and directed toward the eyes of the user.

[0008]The present invention further provides a personal protection system having a head unit with an easily accessible control panel. The head unit is adapted to be worn on the head of a user. The head unit includes a support structure and a ventilation unit supported by the support structure. The ventilation unit has a fan that discharges air toward the user. A chin bar depends downwardly from the support structure to define a facial opening for the user. The control panel is disposed on the chin bar and includes at least one control switch for the ventilation unit. A protective covering drapes over the head unit. The protective covering includes a flaccid shroud with a filter section for filtering air entering the shroud from the external environment. The protective covering also includes a transparent face shield mounted to the shroud. By placing the ventilation controls on the chin bar, the wearer of the personal protection system has easier access to the controls and can easily locate the controls without much difficulty.

Problems solved by technology

However, there are some limitations associated with their use.

The face shields associated with prior art togas / hoods create an undesirable amount of glare.

In particular, due to the shape of the face shields utilized, undesirable amounts of light reflect off an inside surface of the face shields and are directed toward the eyes of the wearer.

This means that an individual wearing the system may be unable to focus on the area being targeted for surgery.

This location tends to be difficult to navigate for the wearer, especially with the toga / hood covering the controls and the controls being out of the site of the wearer.

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